An Interesting Pay Scale For Quarterbacks
Paying a franchise quarterback has become increasingly expensive in the NFL as the Baltimore Ravens just experienced following the contract extension the team and Joe Flacco just agreed to. The deal is a fair one for both sides and is in line with the pay scale of franchise quarterbacks. But listen in below (or read the transcript) to a suggestion made by Paul Pabst of The Dan Patrick Show.
During the Ravens presser to announce the new Joe Flacco deal, Ozzie Newsome seemed very content with the signing while restating the importance of a franchise quarterback. After the presser he shared the following:
“Teams struggle with the quarterback position. Philly signing Bradford and Washington having to put the franchise tag on Cousins. They don’t have the resume that Joe has, and for us to be moving forward with a guy that has eight years and won a Super Bowl and been in three AFC championship games, it speaks volumes.”
Perhaps Ozzie was attempting to justify the largest contract ever extended by the Ravens through the Bradford and Cousins comparisons. Both players are set to make for the moment, $18 – $20M in 2016, just shy of Flacco’s $21M+ per season under his new deal.
This is what you can expect when paying a franchise quarterback.
Flacco’s deal seems fair on the surface, particularly when you consider how the quarterback pay scale continues to climb.
Speaking of which, Paul Pabst from The Dan Patrick Show presented an interesting pay scale for quarterbacks. He suggested that quarterbacks get $1M for every TD pass they throw and lose $1M for every interception.
How about a new pay scale for NFL QB’s. You get a million for every TD pass and lose a million for every INT. Get your check after season.
— Paul Pabst (@PaulPabst) March 2, 2016
Applying that pay scale, here’s what some of the earnings would have been in 2015 for some of the league’s high profile quarterbacks.
Double Check Aaron Rodgers would have earned $23M in 2015 (31TD’s v. 8 INT’s); Carson Palmer would have netted $24M (35 TD’s v. 11 INT’s); Cam Newton, $25M (35 TD’s v. 10 INT’s); Russell Wilson, $26M (34 TD’s v. 8 INT’s).
The highest paid QB per Pabst’s pay scale would have been Tom Brady at $29M (36 TD’s v. 7 INT’s).
Here are a couple others that will interest you. Ben Roethlisberger would have made only $5M in 2015 (21 TD’s v. 16 INT’s) and Joe Flacco, just $2M (14 TD’s v. 12 INT’s).
And lastly, and perhaps the most interesting, Super Bowl 50 winning quarterback Peyton Manning would owe John Elway and the Denver Broncos $8M for his 9 touchdown passes and 17 interceptions in 2015.
A franchise quarterback…it’s good work if you can get it.
Follow Tony Lombardi on Twitter @RSRLombardi
